Straggling toward finish, Texans face Broncos today

Texans straggling toward finish1-7 collapse after fast start still puzzling to team

DALE ROBERTSON, Copyright 2010 Houston Chronicle

Published
6:30 am CST, Sunday, December 26, 2010

DENVER — The Texans’ season hasn’t been a total loss. It just feels that way, with two so-what games remaining and every important objective beyond their grasp.

In eight days, the Texans will clean out their lockers and go on vacation. But their job is different from most jobs. They wanted to keep working at least until mid-January, and they would have loved to have been showing up at the office in February. They look dazed and sound confused when they attempt to decipher the 1-7 collapse. They can’t believe what happened to them.

Which is this: Since starting 2-0, with differently scripted but equally impressive victories over Indianapolis and Washington, they averaged one victory per month.

“I look back at the team we had in 2006, my rookie year,” tight end Owen Daniels said, “and we have so many more good players now. We’re so much better.”

Don’t seek evidence in the standings. If the Texans can’t beat the Broncos — they’ve never won in Denver — or a Jacksonville team that might come to Houston with the AFC South championship in its sights, they’ll finish with a worse record than their 6-10 of five years ago, when Gary Kubiak inherited a team that was 2-14 the previous season.

Arian Foster's breakout season provided a highlight in another playoff-free season for the Texans.

Arian Foster's breakout season provided a highlight in another playoff-free season for the Texans.

Photo: Karen Warren, Chronicle

Photo: Karen Warren, Chronicle

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Arian Foster's breakout season provided a highlight in another playoff-free season for the Texans.

Arian Foster's breakout season provided a highlight in another playoff-free season for the Texans.

Photo: Karen Warren, Chronicle

Straggling toward finish, Texans face Broncos today

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The Texans wanted to post the franchise’s first 10-win season in 2010. Now, they’re hardly a lock to stop the bleeding at 10 losses.

“Matt’s (Schaub) our quarterback, and he’s the best guy to be on the field for us,” he said. “These games are just as important to me as the last 14 we’ve played.”

Broncos down, too

The Broncos (3-11) might be the best foe for the purpose of the Texans maintaining perspective. One more loss and Pat Bowlen’s proud franchise will set a season record for most defeats. Denver, which won the Super Bowl twice and played in three others, has missed the playoffs for the five seasons running.

But some things have gone right for the Texans in 2010. Arian Foster is drawing a bead on the NFL rushing title after last season’s running game ranked among the NFL’s least effective, at 30th. Schaub could post a second consecutive 4,000-yard season despite the Texans’ first-quarter ineptitude and injuries to two Pro Bowlers, receiver Andre Johnson and Daniels.

Johnson, whose participation today is iffy, hasn’t been 100 percent since the opener because of a sprained ankle. Daniels, laid low by a pulled hamstring as he struggled to regain his form following a knee injury last fall, has only been close to his old self the past couple of weeks.

Further, the Texans have become a strong red-zone and short-yardage team. Few could argue with the notion they are the most exciting sub-.500 team in the NFL. Five of their nine defeats weren’t sealed until the waning moments, and two of them — at Jacksonville and in OT at home against Baltimore — occurred on the final play.

Potential was there

The irony is how the Texans appeared to have proved they knew how to win.

“As strange as it might sound,” defensive tackle Amobi Okoye said, “I think this team figured it out. Unfortunately, for four or five games, the one play we had to make we didn’t do it.”

Okoye’s defensive cohorts took a huge step in reverse. Thirteenth overall a year ago, they’re 30th (a notch above Denver) and, if Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow possessed an arm equal to the aura he acquired in college, they might be staring at the prospect of finishing with the worst pass defense statistically in the NFL’s history.